Latest Episode | Cut To The Race Podcast
Now that Sir Lewis Hamilton has signed his contract at Mercedes and the final piece of the driver line up jigsaw is complete, a full list of driver salaries has been revealed.
It is no surprise that Hamilton is the top earner, having signed his one year deal for £40 million. This bumper salary includes performance bonuses and sponsorship money. His salary also includes a charitable donation to help increase diversity in Formula One.
Red Bull driver Max Verstappen is the next highest earner, with £18.2 million a year until his contract expires in 2023 which is less than 50% of what Hamilton will earn. Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc and Aussie Daniel Ricciardo will earn £10.19 million each, while Carlos Sainz and Sebastian Vettel, who join Ferrari and Aston Martin respectively this year, will rake in £7.28 million each.
Fernando Alonso, who returns to the sport after having a two year break, will earn £6.55m with Alpine F1, while Hamilton’s team mate, Valtteri Bottas will earn just under 15% of his £40 million salary, bringing in £5.82m. Sergio Perez who takes the Red Bull seat vacated by Alex Albon at the end of last year, signed a deal with the Milton Keynes outfit for £4.37m, and Kimi Raikkonen continues at Alfa Romeo earning £3.64m.
Williams are paying their drivers an even salary this year, with both George Russell and Nicholas Latifi taking home £700k each. However, the salaries of both Haas drivers, Mick Schumacher and Car #9 have not been confirmed. They are both rumoured to be earning the same salary between £500k and £1m.
Formula 1 Driver Salaries 2021
| No. | Driver | Team | Salary | Expiry (*with option) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | £40m | 2021 |
| 2 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | £18.2m | 2023 |
| 3 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | £10.19m | 2024 |
| – | Daniel Ricciardo | McLaren | £10.19m | 2022* |
| 5 | Carlos Sainz | Ferrari | £7.28m | 2022* |
| – | Sebastian Vettel | Aston Martin | £7.28m | 2021* |
| 7 | Fernando Alonso | Alpine F1 | £6.55m | 2022 |
| 8 | Valtteri Bottas | Mercedes | £5.82m | 2021 |
| 9 | Sergio Perez | Red Bull | £4.37m | 2021 |
| 10 | Kimi Raikkonen | Alfa Romeo | £3.64m | 2021 |
| 11 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine F1 | £3.4m | 2021 |
| 12 | Lando Norris | McLaren | £1.4m | 2021* |
| – | Pierre Gasly | Alpha Tauri | £1.4m | 2021* |
| – | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | £1.4m | open |
| 15 | George Russell | Williams | £700k | 2021 |
| – | Nicholas Latifi | Williams | £700k | 2021 |
| 17 | Antonio Giovinazzi | Alfa Romeo | £500k | 2021* |
| 18 | Mick Schumacher | Haas | unknown (rumoured to be £500k-£1m) | 2021 |
| – | Car #9 | Haas | unknown (rumoured to be £500k-£1m) | 2021 |
| 20 | Yuki Tsunoda | AlphaTauri | unknown (rumoured to be £250k-£1m) | 2021 |
(All the figures include driver performance bonuses and personal sponsors.)
Image Credit: Getty Images/formulaone.com